The Prince of Demons
by Nazget
Summary: Every day can start as a normal day. But that doesn't mean the whole day will be normal. For Ryoma, this abnormal day will lead to many paths, and secrets will not remain such for long.
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi. I do not own it. (That is why this is a fanfic.)

Hay, look. It's edited. Maybe I should rewrite it, but...

Too lazy.

Anyhoo, my friend wanted me to continue, so we're on her laptop editing. WOO.

... And if you haven't read this, then uh, I hope you enjoy.

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**The Prince of Demons, Chapter One.**

"I'm going now."

Echizen Ryoma nodded goodbye to his cousin, Nanako, as he slipped out the door. As always, his mother was on some business trip, while his useless father was probably reading some naughty magazines somewhere else within the temple house.

"Be safe!" He heard his cousin call after him as the door shut, but he didn't reply.

"Took ya long enough, Echizen!"

Ryoma looked up to see his sempai, Momoshiro, waiting for him. "Hn..." Was his only reply as he moved over to the older boy and his bike, quickly positioning himself on the metal bars on the back.

"Yo, Echizen, I was thinking that after practice we should go for burgers. What do ya say?" Momo asked with a grin as he started pedaling.

"Momo-chan-sempai will pay, right?" Ryoma asked, poking the back of the other's head.

"No way! I'll get Eiji-sempai to tag along or something. I'm sure he'd love to pay." Momo replied with a loud laugh. Honestly, paying with his own money? No chance.

"Right," Ryoma nodded.

When the two were almost to school, Ryoma noted the strange silence that was surrounding them. It seemed that nature's voice had been put on mute, in his opinion. It was incredibly strange, and not something many would actually notice, seeing as the cars that passed by, along with several other students that they passed chats', were still continuing.

"Hey, Momo-... Hn?" Ryoma looked ahead, and noticed something particularly strange.

"Yeah?"

"... Momo-sempai! Car!" Ryoma suddenly yelled, pointing ahead. A car was heading the wrong way, speeding, right toward them.

Momo's eyes widened, and he felt himself freeze for a brief moment, before he veered his bike right, toward some bushes.

However, his hesitant movement proved to last a moment too long.

BAM!

A loud screeching, and many onlooker's screams were all Ryoma heard as he felt himself fly into Momo, and then into the bush. He could see only darkness, and hear the sound of the car momentarily stop, before the screeching of the tires sounded again, and the car was off.

_D-Damn it... My eyes won't open. Open! Damn it, open! I need to see if Momo-sempai is alright!_

Ryoma eventually forced his eyes open, and saw the back of Momo's gelled hair. He struggled to drag himself off the older boy. He didn't even see the crowd gathering around them. He reached forward with a shaky hand, gently nudging the other.

Without even realizing it had been there, a giant weight had been lifted off Ryoma's shoulders as he saw Momo shudder, before sitting up. "Damn- augh, my head..." He mumbled, before looking at Ryoma. "Echizen... Are you hurt?"

"No. Are you?"

"No. Thank goodness..." Momo let out a heavy sigh, and then looked to his bike. "Damn... It's wrecked!"

"That's Momo-sempai for you." Ryoma said, shaking his head, before gently frowning. "It must have not hit us directly... I think it hit the back tire."

Momo nodded, slowly standing and offering a hand to Ryoma, who took it and stood. "But, then you would've been hit, too."

"I jumped forward when I saw it was gonna hit us." Ryoma replied simply, watching Momo walk to the bike which lay several feet away and stand it up straight. _Though it was surprising... Even I didn't think my reaction could be so quick._

"I can't believe they ran." Momo said, as they heard the sound of police sirens. It seemed someone had called the police.

The rest was somewhat of a blur to both Ryoma and Momo. When the police arrived, they asked both of the boys several questions, made sure they were unhurt, called parents, and questioned some of the surrounding witnesses. The car was revealed to be a black Honda, with no license plate- and it appeared no one had seen the driver, as the car had tinted windows.

Though, most every witness mentioned something about a black blur that had covered the two. No one thought anything of it.

The two were allowed to go to school by the time lunch was nearing its end, and by then, rumors of what had happened had spread throughout the entire school.

"Echiizeeen! Momo-sempai!" Here came that annoying Horio now. "Are you two alright? Did Echizen and Momo-sempai really get hit by a car? Is it true it was a hit and run?!"

"Horio-kun! Don't ask so many questions at once," Katsuo said, lightly scolding his friend.

"But really, are you two alright?" Kachirou asked.

"Hn... Yes." Ryoma replied, and pulled his cap down over his head.

Momo just laughed, nodding. "All fine, all fine!"

"R-Ryoma-kun!"

"Ryoma-sama!"

Ryoma looked over to see Sakuno and Tomo hurrying over. He was asked the same questions, and was glad that Momo was the one to answer with another laugh.

He felt like not talking to anyone. He could still feel his heart beating, his body shaking. Ryoma didn't know why he still felt so freaked out by the earlier happenings, but he was, though he easily kept that hidden. His hazel, cat-like eyes stayed glued to the floor, his cap pulled down to cover his pale face. His hands clenched his racket case's strap tightly to hide their shaking, though not so tight as to attract attention.

When more people arrived, asking the same old questions, he was relieved that the bell had chosen that moment to echo through the school. It was finally time. It would be nice to get his mind off everything, off that horrible feeling that was making shivers go up and down his spine. Why...

_Why don't I feel that this is the end?_

----

The rest of the day passed quickly enough, and soon afternoon practice had arrived. Ryoma had just taken off his shirt in the clubhouse when-

"Nya! Ochibi, are you alright! I heard you were in an accident with Momo-chan!" He heard Eiji from behind, and immediately felt the other's arms get thrown around him.

"Hai. We are both alright, though." Ryoma replied, shrugging the other off his shoulders.

"That's good! I was really worried! ... Oh! Ochibi got a tattoo?" Eiji gasped, poking something on Ryoma's back.

"...What?" Ryoma looked at Eiji, blinking.

"Nya, the one on your back! It's kinda cute, kinda dark too! I didn't think Ochibi was the type...-"

Eiji was cut off by Oishi, as he entered. "Echizen! I'm glad you're alright. I heard from Momo. He's outside telling everyone that you two are fine." He said, approaching the two.

"Oi, oi! Oishi! Ochibi has a tattoo!"

"W-What?" Oishi's eyes widened, and he looked to where Eiji was pointing. "Echizen! A tattoo... do your parents know? Don't you think you're a bit too young? What if the needles weren't sanitary-" He looked really worried, but Ryoma cut him off.

"What are you talking about?" Ryoma asked, though he didn't lose his calm, dull voice. Eiji dragged the boy to a mirror, and turned him around just enough so he could see his back in the reflection.

"Nya, nya, see!"

Ryoma stared, long and hard at his back.

There, was what appeared to be two black little chibi wings imprinted onto his back.

His brow furrowed for a moment, and as he heard the clubhouse door open, he hurried to get his shirt on.

"Saa... Echizen, what was that I saw on your back?" It was Fuji who had now entered.

"A tattoo!" Eiji answered for the boy, and hurried over to Ryoma, jerking up his shirt.

"H-Hey!"

"..." Fuji remained silent, slowly moving over to the three. (Oishi was trying to get Eiji away from Ryoma) "I see... It's a very nice tattoo."

Ryoma paled, before he jerked out of Eiji's grip, and pulled down his shirt. "... Gonna warm up…" He mumbled, quickly exiting the club house as those already changed followed, and those that hadn't stayed, while more members of the team entered.

---

Due to Eiji's big mouth, nearly everyone in the club had heard about the tattoo before the afternoon practice had even started.

The captain, Tezuka stared at his gossiping team, his vice-captain Oishi by his side, and their coach, Ryuuzaki Sumire by his other.

"... Everyone! 20 laps if you don't stop talking and line up, now!" Tezuka called out, and within seconds everyone was lined up, silent.

"Good." Tezuka said, and readjusted his glasses with a mental sigh. "Now, we'll be carrying out our regular schedule today. Regulars. Oishi, Eiji, you'll be having a match with Fuji and Takashi. Kaidoh, Inui, you will be facing each other, as will Momoshiro and Echizen. Non-regulars, pair up and practice. First years, pick up balls."

It didn't take long for everyone to go to their assigned courts.

"So... Echizen..." Momo said as they began their game. "You really have a tattoo? And you didn't tell me about it?" He asked, serving.

Ryoma easily returned the ball. "Momo-sempai, I didn't even realize I had it until Eiji pointed it out to me."

"Oh really?" Momoshiro hit the ball back.

"Do you think I'm lying?" Ryoma glared slightly, tugging his hat down with one hand as the other swung the racket, hitting the ball back again.

"No, no, not at all! Of course a tattoo could mysteriously just appear on your back!" Momo said. This time, as he hit the ball, Ryoma came forward and hit it with such force and speed that Momo couldn't possibly make it to the ball in time.

"It did happen," Ryoma said, tapping his racket on his shoulder. _Stupid sempai. Why doesn't he believe me?_

"Listen Echizen, it's just-" Momo's voice was cut off, by another.

"Echizen Ryoma, correct?"

They both turned their heads toward the speaker. He was business man, by the looks of it, standing outside the gated tennis courts. Black hair was gelled neatly back, and he wore a black suit with a white undershirt and black tie. His eyes were hidden by sunglasses.

Ryoma felt himself stiffen, his whole body running cold as shivers went up and down his spine. What was this strange feeling?

Nature was mute again...

Just like last time...

"Who's asking...?" He asked, though his voice didn't come out quite like he had wanted it to.

"Hunter, Jeri," The man, Jeri, replied.

Ryoma blinked- and a sudden memory suddenly echoed through his brain.

_How old had he been? He couldn't remember, but he couldn't have been much younger than he was now. However, he did remember a man, in a pure white suit. His hair dark and gelled, while his eyes were hidden behind dark sunglasses, just like the man in front of him. It was the same man, no doubting it._

_The man seemed to be standing above him, with a long knife that appeared to be on fire in his hand. He had a crazed grin- and Ryoma noticed the blood on his suit._

That was it, but it had Ryoma shaking. "You..."

"Oh, do you remember me?" Jeri asked, smiling, almost happily. "Ah, but that is silly. There's no way you could remember _everything_. What your father did, I'm sure, made sure of that."

"Wait- you know Echizen?" Momo asked, looking back and forth between the two.

"Indeed! I happened to meet him just before his family decided to move to Japan. But, to have finally had the chance to meet him again-"

"Excuse me, but we are in the middle of practice." Tezuka had noticed them finally, as did Ryuuzaki, and had come over to cut the conversation short.

The Coach was eyeing the man suspiciously. "You don't seem to have a visitors pass. I'm afraid you'll have to leave, or get one."

"Maa, maa..." Jeri sighed, "Sorry, sorry. I just came to pick up Ryoma, actu-"

"NO!"

Everyone was surprised to hear Ryoma yell so loudly. Even the other practice games were stopped as people looked over.

In truth, Ryoma was surprised himself. Why did he say that?

"I'm not going with you..." His voice was calmer this time around. "I don't know you."

"That's really hurtful. Your dad sent me." Jeri said, smiling a smile that continued to scare Ryoma.

"Oyaji? Sorry, but I'm still not risking you being some weird molester." Ryoma said, looking away and tapping his racket on the ground.

"If you'll please go and allow us to practice." Tezuka said, shooting the man a look.

"Hai, hai." Jeri said, scratching the back of his head. "I suppose I'll call Nanjirou and tell him I'm unable to pick his son up."

With that, the man left as he withdrew a cell-phone from his pocket. Ryoma heard a few birds strike up a conversation off to the side.

"Echizen. Momoshiro. Continue your match."

The rest of the practice passed without any more disturbances, and soon the time to go home had come.

"Hey, Echizen, what about those burgers, eh?" Momo said, grinning at his smaller friend. "Still up to them?"

"Of course." Ryoma replied.

"Nya! Can I come, too?" Eiji asked, smiling, and Momo grinned.

"We were just about to invite you! Because we knew you'd be a good sempai and pay." Momo nudged Eiji, grinning.

"Weeeh!" The red-head pouted.

"Ah, may I come? I don't mind paying all too much." This time is was Fuji who spoke. His bright blue eyes were hidden away, as always, and he had that ever present smile on his face.

"Oh! Oh!" Eiji was grinning, "Why don't all the regulars go!" He turned, "Taka-san! Tezuka-buchou! Oishi! Kaidooooh, Innnuuuiii!" Eiji was off, already asking said players if they wished to join them for burgers.

Surprisingly, all decided to come along. After all had changed, they set off from the clubhouse, away from the school, and down the street to Ryoma and Momo's favorite burger joint.

Fuji walked next to Ryoma as they went along. "So, Echizen. Today seemed to be an eventful one." He said, smiling at the freshman.

"Yeah." Ryoma looked up at Fuji, before looking ahead. "... Something's going to happen, I think." He said, suddenly.

"Oh? What?" Fuji tilted his head, his light, brown hair moving slightly to the side.

"I don't know." Ryoma answered truthfully. "It just doesn't feel like it's over, is all." He looked up again to the blue-eyed prodigy. Only this time, he thought he saw a hint of those baby blues, which made a shiver go down his spine.

"Echizen... Do you want to know why this all is happening?" It was a simple, yes or no question that Fuji Shusuke asked. But when Ryoma opened his mouth to answer, nothing came out.

Did Fuji know why he had been in an accident that morning? Did he know who that man was?

The older boy just looked down at him, as if awaiting the answer.

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**End of Prince of Demons, Chapter One.**

I hope you've enjoyed reading the first fanfic I've ever gotten the nerve to actually post up. Second chapter will come soon.


	2. Chapter Two

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi. I do not own it. (That is why this is a fanfic.)

Woo. Edited this chapter too! Omfggsga;gdg… Doesn't mean it has gotten any better, though. ;' O

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**The Prince of Demons, Chapter Two.**

Ryoma thought for a long moment about whether he truly wanted to know what was going on. Surely it would be enlightening, but he had a rather bad feeling about what the answer would be. Ryoma felt it was sometimes best to be ignorant toward certain things in life, but was this something he should be ignorant to? Well, it DID involve his life.

"Yes, Fuji-sempai. I do want to know why everything is happening." Ryoma said, tilting his cap down but still looking up to Fuji.

"Aa, that's good." Fuji said, and gently grabbed the other's arm. While the rest of their team continued down the street, Fuji pulled the freshman down another. "It'll be a long explanation, and I don't think you would want anyone else to hear." He said.

Ryoma glanced back, and noticed Tezuka looking at them, before the buchou turned forward.

"... Fuji-sempai, are you sure you're not just trying to get out of paying for everyone?" Ryoma asked, sighing inwardly.

"Saa, maybe." Fuji said, shrugging. He then let out a small chuckle, "No, no. Echizen, your house is this way, right?"

"Hai... But why are we going there?" Ryoma asked, looking up at the tensai.

"Well, Echizen, I think your father would be better to explain this. Besides, I just want to make sure I'm right about all of this before I go and tell you something false." He smiled down at the boy. "Truth is, I think you and I may be more alike than either of us knew before." He patted the boy's back.

"Hn..." Ryoma paled at being anything like his sadistic teammate. "What makes you think this, Fuji-sempai?"

"I won't lie. That tattoo I saw on your back. It just appeared, right?"

"Yes..." Ryoma had to wonder what the boy was getting at.

"Well, that's what makes me think what I'm thinking." Fuji said with a nod.

The rest of the walk passed by in silence, and soon they arrived at Ryoma's home. When they entered, slipping out of their shoes, Ryoma called out, "I'm home!"

"Welcome home, brat!" Nanjirou came down from the stairs, and raised an eyebrow at seeing Fuji. "What's this? You brought a girl home? Wait- isn't he one of your teammates?" His eyes widened. "The brat brought home a friend! Gasp!"

"Hmm. Sir, you're very good at hiding your presence." Fuji said with his usual smile. Ryoma blinked up at the boy, wondering why he was being so weird.

"... Presence? ... Are you... a hunter?" Nanjirou's eyes squinted at the boy. Ryoma thought he looked very serious all of a sudden. It scared the boy. He had never seen his father look that way before.

There was a loud cracking noise, along with a bright flash, and Ryoma slapped his hands over his ears. It was so incredibly loud. The next thing he knew, a sword was in his father's hands, and there appeared to be sparks crawling up and down the blade. The moment he saw it appear, the sword was swung toward Fuji's neck. The boy ducked, and Ryoma could hear the sword go over his head.

"Ah, sir, Nanjirou-san. You've got it all wrong, I'm not a hunter." Fuji said, waving his arms a bit in front of his face as he stood straight again. "But at least now my suspicions are confirmed. You are the King of Demons, are you not? And little Echizen here is the Prince." Fuji swept into a bow. "It's an honor to be in your presence. I am Fuji Shusuke. A mountain spirit."

Nanjirou stared at the boy. "Fuji...?" He asked, before smiling and letting his sword disappear with another loud CRACK and a flash. "I've been wondering where that family went. We've been missing our bodyguards."

Fuji laughed as he stood straight for a second time. "Your family is the one that disappeared, sir."

"Haha, I suppose that's true." Nanjirou laughed with the boy.

"... Please stop ignoring me and tell me what the hell is going on." Ryoma hissed, glaring at the two.

Nanjirou looked at his son, and frowned a bit.

"Sir, I think it's best you tell him everything now. It's best he knows, after all, hunters have already seen his face in Japan. And I honestly doubt he wants to move again." Fuji glanced at Ryoma, "The reason you guys moved here from America was to get away from the hunters, correct? Well, I don't think you should run anymore. I think Ryoma should learn everything there is to know about being a demon. Especially since that hunter, Jeri, is here."

Nanjirou sighed. "Jeri, eh? I suppose... He should learn. He is going to be King one day, after all." He sighed, "And he should learn how to protect himself..."

"..." Ryoma twitched. This was crazy.

Nanjirou placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "Fuji, you can head home. I think we should start as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir. Good luck." Fuji bowed, smiling at Ryoma before slipping his shoes on and heading out the door. Before he went any further, though, he looked back. "Ah, I'll be informing my family that you all are back." He said, smiling, before moving on.

"Yeah, yeah." Nanjirou gave a small wave, before giving Ryoma a nudge toward the back door. "Now, brat, first things first..."

---

That night for Ryoma had been a long one. After Fuji had left, his father had the first serious talk he had had with the boy in a long time. He told him of another world. Not necessarily a completely other world- simply another within their own. One where there were more than humans, and all sorts of other races. Spirits of different kinds, like Fuji, and different kinds of demons. From sprites, to unicorns, to goblins, orcs, and any sort of mythical creature. They all existed, but simply didn't reveal themselves to humans as much as they had in the past.

The Echizen family was a sort of ruling family among these races, and his father had been dubbed the 'King of Demons.' Ryoma's mother, Rinko, was obviously the 'Queen of Demons.' And thus, Ryoma was the 'Prince of Demons.'

As soon as the explanation was complete, Ryoma still found himself confused and unbelieving. However, when Nanjirou showed his son his power over electricity, Ryoma had to believe the man. And all the more so when he showed the boy two huge, black wings.

"You have wings too. Black, little chibi ones. But you're still young, they'll get bigger." Nanjirou had told him. "Just as your powers will grow stronger." He patted the boy on the back, "At the moment they are hidden as tattoos, and can only come out in moments of great stress or when you are in danger."

He then tested the boy, and learned that Ryoma's ruling power was supposedly wind and slight foresight, though he would be able to learn power over many elements. After that, he taught the boy different spells.

When Ryoma finally went to bed, despite being exhausted, he could barely sleep. Too much had happened that day, and his mind couldn't find the power to shut down. He kept thinking that it was all a dream itself. Him, a prince? A demon? He, Ryoma Echizen, had powers? He was supposed to be a leader to a race he hadn't known about until tonight? It was too much.

But finally, after many hours of simply laying there and thinking, Ryoma was able to fall into a light slumber.

And now it was day, and Ryoma was showered, dressed, and eating a nice Japanese meal with his father and cousin.

"So, Ryoma-kun..." Nanako said, staring at Ryoma. "Uhm. How was yesterday? Did you learn a lot?"

"Betsuni. Baka oyaji is a horrible teacher." Ryoma said with a shrug.

"Hey, brat! Is that any way to treat-"

Ryoma cut his father off, "Thank you Nanako-san. I'm off." He stood, bringing his plate to the kitchen before heading to the door. Just as he walked out, he saw Momo rolling up on a brand new bike – bought after yesterday's incident.

"Hey, Echizen! Where'd you and Fuji-sempai go yesterday? A date?" Momo called out to him, and Ryoma moved over to his sempai.

"Baka." Ryoma mumbled, and hopped on the metal rungs. "He took me home."

"Eh? Why?" Momo asked, kicking off and riding down the street.

"Momo, turn right. Let's take the long way." Ryoma said.

"Why? And, you didn't answer me..." Momo said with a frown.

Ryoma didn't know why he wanted to take the long way to school this time around. But he felt like the wind was whispering to him, telling him that another 'accident' may happen if they went the normal way. "Because I feel like taking the long way."

"Fine..." Momo said, and turned right. "Now, why did Fuji-sempai take you home?"

"He wanted to talk to me in private." Ryoma explained, inwardly angry that his sempai wasn't taking his subtle hints to drop the subject.

"About what?" Momo asked.

"Momo-sempai, just drop it!" Ryoma snapped, and was shocked that he did so. Echizen Ryoma _**never**_snapped. Never. He always kept his cool, but yesterday...

_I just can't believe all of this is happening... I must be stressed..._

Momo slowly came to a stop. "Echizen, is something wrong?" He asked, looking over his shoulder at the boy.

"No. Drop it. Just keep pedaling." Ryoma said, rubbing his head with one hand and keeping a grip on Momo's shoulder with the other. _At least he isn't mad with me being angry like that._

They got to the school with no problem, though they were a few minutes late to practice. After changing, they came out to find everyone already stretching.

"Echizen! Momoshiro! Twenty la-" Tezuka began, but stopped when he saw Fuji glomp Ryoma.

"Oh, thank goodness you are okay! I was worried something had happened, Ryoma-kun!" Fuji said, hugging the boy a bit too tightly. He also didn't call the boy 'Echizen.'

"F-Fuji-sempai... We just... t-took the long way... Can't... breath..." Ryoma coughed, pushing Fuji away.

"... Fuji! Echizen! Momoshiro! Thirty laps!" Tezuka said, glaring at the bunch with this trademark glare.

"But, buchou! Just because Fuji interrupted, why do-" It was Momo's turn to get interrupted.

"Momoshiro! Forty laps!" Tezuka said, glaring.

"Hai, buchou!" Momoshiro said, and the three set off to run their laps, in fear of being ordered any more.

----------

**End of Prince of Demons, Chapter Two.**


	3. Chapter Three

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi. I do not own it. (That is why this is a fanfic.)

Well, finally the third chapter has arrived. I actually wrote many parts of this several times... And was never happy with the results. But I finally got something I was content with!

Oh, I brought my all time favorite character into the mix. I dunno if the characters seem OOC or not- if they do, oh well. As long as I enjoy writing the story, it's all good.

Well, Enjoy!

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**The Prince of Demons, Chapter Three.**

Fuji, Momoshiro, and Ryoma all were recovering from their laps when Fuji turned to the freshmen prince.

"Ryoma-kun, why did you take the long way to school?" Fuji asked, wiping his sweaty palms on his pants. It really was getting to be such a hot day. "Did something happen?" Concern was, unusually, scribbled clearly across his face.

Momoshiro looked at the boy as well. He'd been wondering the same thing, had even asked the boy, but he had not gotten an answer. He'd only gotten a 'Because I feel like taking the long way.'

Ryoma glanced at Momo, before looking away from both of his teammates and to a tree outside the courts. The gentle breeze that made the day at least semi-bearable lightly caressed the leaves, sending the occasional leaf drifting onto the grassy ground beneath. "Just a bad feeling..." He mumbled, and his eyes became lightly glazed over as he listened to the whispering wind.

_'Stay close to those you know. An enemy is very close.'_

'_Watch your back, but make sure to see what is in front of your face as well.'_

He blinked at the words that echoed in his head. He heard them, but it was inside his mind. Words that weren't truly being spoken...

Ryoma snapped out of his little, sudden trance when Momo began to wave a hand in front of his face. "Hey! Earth to Echizen, you there?" he asked, and smirked when he actually saw the freshmen jump.

"That's mean, Momo-sempai." Ryoma mumbled when Momo began to laugh. It wasn't every day someone got to startle Ryoma- it was bound to be a funny sight.

Fuji watched Ryoma intently, frowning slightly before a his usual sadistic smirk came to his face. "Saa, Ryoma-kun, shall we join everyone now? Tezuka-buchou looks like he's about to order some more laps..." He placed a hand on Ryoma's shoulder, and steered the other toward where the regulars were gathered. Momo blinked as he watched them go, before quickly following after.

Tezuka nodded when they arrived, opening his mouth to tell them their schedule for practice, before he noticed two familiar figures out of the corner of his eye. He looked over, and raised his eyebrow one millionth of an inch.

Everyone turned their heads, and saw who had just arrived.

Mizuki, and Fuji's younger brother Yuuta.

Fuji opened his eyes at the sight of the manager of Saint Rudolph, before his gaze softened at his younger sibling. He slowly moved to the fence, everyone following close behind.

"As pleased as I am to see you, Yuuta-kun, what are you both doing here?" Fuji asked, tilting his head.

"Erm..." Yuuta shifted from foot to foot, a little uncomfortable. "Mizuki just kinda... suddenly got the urge to come here and..." He glanced at Ryoma, before looking at Fuji.

Everyone else also looked at Ryoma. The younger Fuji brother had looked at the kid for a reason, after all. They then turned their gazes to look at Mizuki.

"Echizen." Mizuki nodded at Ryoma. "I want to recruit you for Saint Rudolph."

"What! Ochibi would never leave us!" Eiji yelled out, and glomped Ryoma. "You can't just come here randomly one day and ask him to join your school! It's so... Random!"

Mizuki gave out his famous little evil laugh, his arms folded and his knuckles lightly brushing his chin. "But I just did."

"He won't go." Fuji said flatly, glaring at Mizuki, before looking at Ryoma. "Right, Ryoma-kun?"

"I can answer for myself..." Ryoma mumbled, though Eiji was really the only one able to heard him say that. "Hai, Sempai." He said louder. "I won't go. Seigaku is fine for me."

Mizuki smirked, "I think I have something to change that mind of yours. Come here, Echizen. I'll give you a reason to come.." He flashed something in his hand... a picture.

"It's no good to blackmail my teammates, Mizuki-san. Please leave now." Tezuka said, his steady and calm voice demanding absolute authority. He wasn't asking.

"Sure it is." Mizuki smiled slyly, ignoring Tezuka's command, and motioned Ryoma over. Ryoma gave a silent sigh, and moved over to the elder boy.

"Everyone else should turn away now." Mizuki said, glancing at everyone, even Yuuta. And they did, after Ryoma gave them a look that said 'everything-is-fine-just-listen-to-him-for-ONCE.'

Mizuki pressed the photo to the fence, and leaned forward, whispering to the younger boy. "I was going to come to Seigaku for a bit of information gathering the other day... and on my way- what do I see? I took a picture just in time..."

Ryoma's eyes were wide, though hidden by his cap, which he was thankful for. It was a picture of the instant Ryoma and Momo got hit by that car... And it showed what that black blur had been.

Ryoma's wings.

"I don't know what this is, but I figure it's perfect to make you join us. Maybe you'll even tell me why you had wings..." Mizuki grinned, and stood straight, sticking his photo into his pocket. "So, Echizen?" He said, loud enough so that everyone got the clue that they could turn around and look again.

Ryoma paled, glanced at Fuji, Yuuta, Tezuka... He took a deep breath, and moved to go through the gate of the courts. Everyone watched him then move to Mizuki's side.

"Ochibi?" Eiji asked, tilting his head. What exactly was Ochibi doing?

"..." Ryoma was silent for a moment, staring up at Mizuki. "Do you have copies?"

"Perhaps. What if I do?" Mizuki asked, grinning as he ran a finger along the edges of the picture inside his pocket.

"Then I won't bother to attack you in order to steal and rip that picture to bits." Ryoma said, crossing his arms.

Everyone stared. It wasn't often Ryoma threatened anyone- He may have insulted people before, or egged someone on enough so that they would play serious tennis with him... But he never actually threatened someone.

"Well, I guess I must be thankful." Mizuki said with his little laugh, "As I have plenty of copies."

Ryoma's steady face dropped slightly, though he hid it by looking off to the side and away from everyone. "If I say no..."

"Then I'll be sure this picture gets spread about." Mizuki said. He was winning.

"People will think it's photo shopped." Ryoma said, and hope came to his heart as he looked back at Mizuki, that defiant look on his face.

"Weeh, Ochibi! What will look photo shopped?" Eiji asked, and clung to the fence, looking out at them.

Ryoma glanced at Eiji, before looking at Mizuki again. He didn't answer.

Mizuki laughed, "Nfu nfu nfu! But what of the people who witnessed the sight? Just this picture would give them an idea of what really happened... And people will believe. They always do."

Ryoma's hands dropped to his sides and clenched tightly together. "..." He opened his mouth, closed it, and looked at his teammates. "How long?" He asked, all stubbornness drained from his voice.

His teammates looked shocked. Even Tezuka's eyes were a little wide, and Fuji had a frown on his face. Fuji... suddenly wished he had bothered to get blackmail on Mizuki Hajime for his collection.

He would be sure to as soon as possible.

"You won't simply join permanently?" Mizuki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I would sooner just murder you. Or maybe hire Fuji-sempai to do so." Ryoma said.

Fuji's smile returned. "I really would, _prince_..." he said, and giggled slightly.

Ryoma got the idea that Fuji really WOULD. And yes, he really, truly would if Ryoma asked him to... Yuuta even fidgeted. "Aniki..."

Mizuki seemed to get the hint, as well, and glared at Fuji. "Hn. Well, I suppose a week will suffice. Though I warn you that I may decide that is not long enough."

"Fine." Ryoma said, and shrugged.

Tezuka brought a hand up and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I suppose I should go talk to Coach Ryuuzaki..." He said, and turned, walking off the courts.

When he disappeared into the school building, Mizuki grinned at Ryoma, and then at Fuji. He could just see the hidden hatred boiling up inside of Fuji, hidden by a seemingly content smile. He then thought of something...

Fuji seemed fairly irritated at Mizuki choosing Ryoma. Perhaps...? Oh, he was liking his own plan more and more now.

"Well, Echizen-kun." Mizuki said, crossing his arms and lifting his nose slightly into the air. "Shall we go get you packed?"

"Packed?" Fuji's eyebrows knitted together.

"Yes. After all, to go to our school, he's going to have to stay in one of the dorms." Mizuki said, giving Fuji a look that screamed 'and-that-dorm-will-be-mine.'

Fuji growled something, and Ryoma let out a small cough. He got a distinct feeling this wasn't just about having him on St. Rudolph's tennis team- It seemed Mizuki really had something against Fuji. Though he wasn't sure why Fuji would be so incredibly annoyed by him going to another school for such a short period of time... "Fine." He said, waving his hand a bit and turning away from the courts.

"Wait... Echizen!" Ryoma glanced back at Momo. "You can't... seriously be agreeing to doing this?" He asked. He looked hurt... Just like the rest of the tennis team.

"...Baka." Ryoma said, and turned away. "I don't want to, but I have to." He then, surprisingly, looked at Fuji. "I hope _you _two understand." As he spoke, he also looked to Yuuta.

Both suddenly had a looked of understanding, and Mizuki gave Yuuta a questioning look. Yuuta just looked away.

Ryoma tipped his cap slightly to his Seigaku teammates, and then started away from the courts, Mizuki and Yuuta right behind. "Bye, aniki." Yuuta gave a slight wave to his elder brother.

"Bye, Yuuta. Ryoma-kun." Fuji mumbled, and turned, staring with blue, sapphire eyes at the other end of the courts.

He then sprinted out of the courts, after the disappearing figures of the three. Everyone watched him leave without a word.

Fuji caught up to the three easily enough, and smiled happily at an annoyed looking Mizuki, an anxious Yuuta, and a stubborn-faced Ryoma. "I figured it was my duty, as a sempai, to help my little kouhai pack to go." Fuji said, and wrapped an arm around Ryoma's shoulders.

Ryoma glared up at the honey haired boy, and inwardly sighed. He may as well not fight it...

Though Mizuki and Fuji shared a few hostile words with each other on the way, Yuuta and Ryoma remained silent. They both glanced at each other several times, their looks showing their annoyance at the older boys. And while it would have been nice to say that they got to Ryoma's home soon enough, they didn't, but they did arrive before Ryoma got pissed off enough to show he was pissed.

When the three moved to follow him into his home, he shot them a look. "Stay." He said, and they stopped. He smirked a little on the inside. "Beg. Roll over. No? Fine." He said, and walked through his front door, closing it behind him.

"He just made a half-hearted attempt at a joke, didn't he?" Yuuta asked, tilting his head.

"Yes." Mizuki and Fuji replied at the same time, and then they glared at each other. "He asked me." Again they spoke in sync... and, in fear of saying the same things again, they settled with glaring at each other in a more fierce way.

After what was actually a very long and silent wait, Ryoma came out again. He had just a backpack- why it took him so long to pack it, who knows?

Nanjirou appeared behind him as he came out. Perfectly reasonable explanation right there.

"I still don't understand why you insist on going, brat!" Ryoma's father look fairly displeased.

"Baka oyaji. I told you- It'll help my tennis skills. Mizuki-san was so kind to offer me this opportunity- I'm going to accept it." Ryoma said, already passing by the three with his father following. The three did as well.

The five made their way down the steps leading to the house. "But, what if- you know- Someone... comes?" His father sounded so concerned, it was scary.

Ryoma turned in the middle of the steps, causing his father to stop very suddenly. Everyone almost tripped behind him. "Isn't it safer?" He asked, glaring at his father. "They know I'm at Seigaku. They won't know I'm at St. Rudolph, if no one mentions it. We can just get everyone to say I'm absent because I'm sick, or something. Besides, Fuji's little brother will be there."

Yuuta twitched. Ryoma may be a prince, but that didn't mean he could call him 'Fuji's little brother'! Wait... Was Ryoma saying he'd be able to protect him if something happened?

Nanjirou sighed, giving in as he found himself unable to change his son's mind. "Fine. I suppose that's all alright..." He turned, and blinked when he saw the three children. "I trust you, Fuji-kun." Nanjirou nodded to Yuuta, and then smiled at Mizuki, laughing a bit. "And if anything happens to my son while he's in your care, Mizuki-san! Well, you'll be a dead man. Now, I'm off to read a few magazines..." He chuckled, and skipped back up the stairs.

Mizuki frowned, a fairly confused look on his face. Why was it safer at St. Rudolph? Was someone after Ryoma? The boy didn't tell his father about the blackmail, for some reason... And the Fuji brothers seemed to be closer to the Echizen family then Mizuki once knew.

He was determined to question the freshman until he knew exactly what was going on... But not until he was settled in the dorm, and both Yuuta and Fuji were away from them.

He had a feeling that it was something he wouldn't find out with them around.

----------

**End of Prince of Demons, Chapter Three.**

Hope this chapter was alright for everyone. Will the forth chapter come soon? Well... It _will _come. I don't plan on abandoning this story, even if everyone in the world hates it. Weheh.

Well, you took the time to read! (Maybe) Now please review! No, really. It gives me a giddy feeling inside to see the little 'reviews' number go up.


	4. Chapter Four

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi. I do not own it. (That is why this is a fanfic.)

So, Chapter Four walks into a bar one day and says to the bartender, "May I have a beer?"

The Bartender stares and says, "Sorry, nope. You're only Four."

Woo. Go my HILARIOUS joke. Laugh, damnit, laugh!

Okay, so don't. Anyway, Here's chapter four- Created by many Sunkists and staying up really late over the past few days... A couple weeks ago. Aheh. Just got around to self-editing...

Maybe I should get someone to read this for me, as well. Hint hint?

----------

**The Prince of Demons, Chapter Four.**

"This is a very... neat room." Ryoma said, staring at the room that was before him.

"Well, of course. You can't have expected someone like me to live in a dump, right?" Mizuki snickered.

"I was imagining a gigantic mess." Fuji said with a smile, and moved into the room. "I suppose what they say about rooms showing someone's personality is wrong."

"Aniki! That's rude." Yuuta sighed. Why couldn't his brother just accept the fact that Mizuki was an O.K guy?! Okay, so he was a bit weird. And, a bit evil, but...

Ryoma sighed, moving into the room and dumping his backpack into a corner.

The group of four was currently in the dorm building at the school St. Rudolph, inside Mizuki's rather clean room. It had taken a long bus ride to get there, but nothing very eventful happened on the way. As it turned out, Mizuki had already used his 'connections' to get Ryoma enrolled at the school for a while.

Ryoma also had to share a dorm with Mizuki.

"Well, Echizen. I hope you enjoy your stay."

"... It's not bad." Ryoma had to remark.

"H-Huh?" Fuji's eyes became wide. He didn't expect Ryoma to ever say something like that about... Mizuki's place.

"There's a Ponta machine almost right outside." Ryoma explained, and Fuji closed his eyes again. That was his prince. Ryoma moved over to a bed and sat down, bouncing slightly on it. "Nice bed."

"That's mine." Mizuki said, smirking. "I brought my own mattress. The ones given aren't so great."

"Mm. Mine now." Ryoma said, and flopped back on the bed.

Yuuta stared. Mizuki always had fits over anyone who laid on his bed...

And yet, the boy was saying nothing now. It confused Yuuta to no end. "Eh, Mizu-"

"It's only for a week." Mizuki said with a shrug, and moved to sit on the other, less soft bed. "Besides, change is always good."

Yeah, right. _I just want to get on his good side. He may actually tell me what I want if I do. Nfu nfu nfu._ "Nfu nfu nfu."

"Right... You know, maybe I should stay-" Fuji started, but Yuuta slapped a hand over his mouth. "Aniki, you go home. Echizen will be fine."

Fuji frowned, "What if it's only for a little-"

"No, Aniki!" Yuuta yelled, glaring. "Don't you trust me?"

Fuji gasped slightly, "Of course I do, Yuuta! I just-... Alright. I'll go." The boy sighed. "Bye, Yuuta. Ryoma-kun."

"Bye..." Yuuta said with a sigh.

Ryoma just gave a faint wave, flopping over so he was facing away.

Fuji glanced at Mizuki, before turning and leaving. Time for the long bus ride home... He was certainly going to be late. Maybe he'd call his sister to pick him up. Yeah...

"Well, it's starting to get late, Yuuta-kun. You should go off to bed, and we'll do the same." Mizuki said after Fuji had left.

"Hai, Mizuki. Just don't... Do anything." Yuuta glanced at Ryoma. "I'd hate for anything to happen because Aniki got angry."

"Yes, yes. Now go. Sleep." Mizuki ordered his younger team mate, and the other sighed, nodding as he left. So much sighing!

Mizuki then proceeded to close and lock his door, before looking over at Ryoma and sitting again. "So, Echizen..."

"You want to know everything, don't you." Ryoma said, sitting up and looking at Mizuki. "Or at the very least make Fuji-sempai angry, or something along those lines."

"Hm? I don't know what you mean." Mizuki said, acting innocent.

"I'm not oblivious or ignorant to the world around me, as much as some people think." Ryoma said flatly, staring right at Mizuki from under his cap.

"Nfu... I suppose not." Mizuki crossed one leg over the other, gazing right back at Ryoma's cat-like eyes... Though he did feel slight intimidation coming from that glare, he did his best to ignore it. "Sure. I do want to know what that was in the picture. Why those wings were there. As well as why you said you would be 'safer' here, to your dad, before we came."

Ryoma tilted his cap down. "I don't think you'll believe me, and if baka oyaji finds out I told you, he might kill you."

"Just try me. I did witness those wings of yours, after all."

"Hn." Ryoma looked at the wall to his left, where the door was. Well, he never was one for long explanations. "I've been told I am the 'Prince of Demons.' So I guess... I'm some kind of demon. And, those wings came out because I was probably stressing at that moment..."

"And these wings, do they come out at will at all?" Mizuki sounded like he was believing the boy.

"No. That was the first and only time. I didn't even know until I saw that picture, that they had actually come out. I knew I had them afterward, but... I just thought they were only tattoos at the moment." Ryoma said.

"Tattoos?" Mizuki lifted an eyebrow.

"On my back." Ryoma gave a small nod.

"I see... And the reason it's safer here?" The elder boy asked.

"I seem to have hunters." Ryoma replied dully, almost as though bored.

"How does the Fuji family tie into all of this, then?" Mizuki asked.

"Hmm." Ryoma shrugged, before laying back, his arms behind his head like a pillow. "If you want, you can asked them. Though I don't recommend it." He stared up at the bare ceiling. Well, it was only a week... Which meant he could leave next Friday. Spending his weekend here though... "Hey?"

"Yes?"

"You'll have to change these sheets later. As comfortable as the mattress is, purple makes me feel a bit weird."

"Are you implying..." Mizuki glared.

"Hm." Ryoma didn't say anything before he stood, moving to his backpack. He needed to put his pajamas on.

Mizuki stood as well, going to the small, usually shared closet and pulling out his own, silky, lavender pajamas. Both mutually agreed to turn away from each other as they changed. Ryoma finished slightly before Mizuki, (his pajamas were cotton and a light green) and moved to the bed, crawling into the covers. Despite the colors, they were pretty soft. It was as nice as his own bed.

Mizuki moved to the other bed, laying down and pulling the dull white covers up. Not so soft. He'd ask his parents to send another set.

"...Mizuki-san."

"Mm-hm?" He looked over to Ryoma.

"You believe me." Ryoma said.

"Yeah."

Well into that night, Ryoma still found himself awake. The bed was nice and all, but he felt like something was missing. He could tell Mizuki was asleep from the even, soft breaths coming from his bed. Ryoma tossed and turned, frowning slightly. "... Karupin..." He whispered, and took the pillow from under his head, hugging it close to his chest and closing his eyes, curling into a tight ball. That was right. His cat... Karupin... He already missed her. He tried to imagine Karupin being the one he was hugging, not the pillow. And as sleep slowly drifted into his mind, he was able to convince himself. By then it was already getting light.

Mizuki was the first to awaken, slowly sitting up and ruffling his messy hair, before standing and moving to dorm's bathroom to take a shower. A half hour later, he was clean and dressed (Purple shirt, black slacks), his hair combed (though still kinda messy) and teeth brushed. He sat on his bed, and stared at the still-sleeping figure of Ryoma. How long could one boy sleep? It was already 8:00, even if it was Saturday. And the boy seemed to really, really like his pillow... His face was buried in the thing, and his whole body was practically hugging it.

Mizuki sighed, getting bored of waiting for the boy to wake up. Ryoma needed a tour of the school, after all, and he needed to get his schedule and uniform for the upcoming week... Besides, Mizuki wanted to go out and do something. Saturdays were not to be wasted with sitting around.

He stood, moving to Ryoma's side and gently shaking the boy. "Hey, Echizen." He said, watching the boy as he really only twitched. He shook the boy harder, "Get up." He said, glaring slightly as he leaned over and poked Ryoma's cheek.

"K-Karupin..." Ryoma mumbled and looked up, all glassy-eyed, at Mizuki. Honestly, Mizuki was shocked to see the boy so sleepy. Who would have thought that cocky, arrogant brat that everyone knew so well, would be a non-morning person?

"Kyeaaa..." Ryoma sniffled, and glomped onto Mizuki's neck. "Karupiiinn..." Maybe 'sleepy' wasn't the best word for it. If anything, Ryoma was just moving and talking in his sleep. The boy giggled slightly. "Karupin, you're so soft and fluffy..."

"?!" Mizuki's eyes widened, "Echizen, wake up!" He half-yelled, losing all composure as he pushed Ryoma off.

Ryoma's head hit the wall, causing the boy to let out a yelp as he finally awoke. He rubbed his head, and glared at Mizuki, "Oyaji, why do you always...! Oh." He blinked. "...Morning." He said. "What are you doing?"

Mizuki frowned. The boy didn't even know what he had done, did he? He rubbed his neck. "Trying to wake you up. You kept mumbling something about... 'Karpen'?" He shrugged, backing up from the bed and sitting.

"Karupin. Baka." Ryoma stood up, making his bed. "Mistake her name again and die."

"Her...? What type of girl has the name 'Karpen'?! And I didn't know you had a girlfriend." Mizuki said, raising an eyebrow.

"..." Ryoma glared. "Expect to die later. I'm going to take a shower now." He said, and turned, moving into the bathroom before coming back out.

"What's wrong?" Mizuki asked.

"All of the towels are purple." Ryoma said.

"Oh. Nfu nfu nfu... Does that worry you?" Mizuki snickered. "Echizen is afraid of colors."

"No." Ryoma said, and moved over to his backpack, taking out a red sleeveless shirt and blue jeans. Ryoma felt like this was a challenge. "I also wanted to get my clothes beforehand. I don't need anyone staring at me with only a purple towel on." He moved to go into the bathroom again.

"There you are, implying that I'm-" Mizuki stood, but was interrupted by Ryoma again.

"Not at all." The boy wonder said, and slammed the bathroom door shut, locking it before moving to take his shower.

When Ryoma came out of the bathroom, fully ready with his green-black hair, as usual, covered by his white cap, he saw Yuuta and Mizuki conversing.

"Good morning, Echizen-san." Yuuta said, standing.

"Morning, Fuji's little brother." Ryoma said, nodding.

"Don't call me that! I have a name. Y-U-U-T-A! Yuuta!" Yuuta said, sending death signals to a little satellite in space and telling it to strike Ryoma down at full blast.

Damn the roof for giving him bad reception! (A/N: Hyper.)

Ryoma blinked. "Right." He said.

"Yuuta-kun was kind enough to go to the office for me and get your schedule and uniform." Mizuki said, motioning to the uniform on Ryoma's bed, the brown slacks, white shirt, and tie, with the schedule on top.

Ryoma shuddered.

He then moved to look at his schedule. Well, at least he was able to keep all his normal classes! "Thank you... Fuji-sempai." Ryoma said, looking at Yuuta. The boy WAS his sempai... and Ryoma wasn't about to go on a first name basis.

"No problem." Yuuta said, and stood. "Well, time to show you where your classes will be, I suppose." The boy said, and Mizuki nodded.

And the three walked out of the dorms, moving to the school to tour around...

---

Meanwhile...

Fuji sat with the rest of the Seigaku team at a nice sized cafe/ice cream parlor. Under Inui's request, they had gathered there to discuss some issues...

Inui sat straight, data book in hand as he pushed his reflective glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I've researched quite a bit, and I have been unable to find what sort of blackmail Mizuki might have on Echizen. Also, I have yet to find out why Echizen allowed himself to go to a different school. I have, however, calculated that there is a 80.54 percent chance that Mizuki's reason for blackmailing Echizen in the first place was not only to get to boy on the St. Rudolph Tennis team, but to also anger Fuji-san."

"Nyaaa... He does seem to have something against you, Fujiko!" Eiji said after inhaling a bit of his chocolate chip with rocky road, sprinkled with gummy bears ice cream. He sat next to Fuji's left, and across from Inui, Tezuka, Kaidoh, and Taka.

Momo laughed, and from Eiji's left said, "You two seem to BOTH have something against each other!"

"Saa... Maybe." Fuji said, smiling. He sipped his coffee all too pleasantly.

"Fuji. Do you know what the blackmail is?" Tezuka asked the other. He was sitting across from the boy.

"Why would Fuji know, Tezuka-buchou?" Oishi said as he arrived after leaving to the bathroom. He sat on Fuji's right. (It was a big booth, darn it.)

"He's Fuji." Tezuka said with a very faint shrug.

"Hm. I might know." Fuji said, and opened his eyes. "But maybe not. If it's what I think it to be, then I think I'll have to kill him." He glared at the table, his sapphire eyes enough to make almost everyone at the table shiver.

"You're not serious, are you, Fuji?" Taka asked the other.

Fuji blinked, closing his eyes as he smiled at the sushi chef in training. "Of course I am, Taka-san." He said.

"Fuujiii..." Eiji whined. "You shouldn't joke like thaaat..."

"But I'm really not joking." Fuji said, and sipped his coffee again.

Tezuka rubbed his head, "Please don't kill anyone..." He said.

"Fshh..." Everyone looked at Kaidoh. "What do you think it is, Fuji?" Kaidoh asked.

"The blackmail?" Fuji asked, and got a nod from the junior. Everyone turned their gaze now to the prodigy.

...Silence...

"Well?" Momo said.

"Hm?" Fuji turned his head to look at their good ol' power player.

"The blackmail, what do you think the blackmail is!"

"Oh." Fuji chuckled. Sipped his coffee...

Another lengthy silence.

It was then fairly evident that Fuji wasn't going to say anything. Then again, it was a subject of BLACKMAIL. People don't usually share those types of things unless they are actually using the blackmail to their advantage.

"Nyaa, Let's go do something!" Eiji suddenly suggested, hopping to his feet and jumping over Fuji and Oishi to stand next to the table. "Like, like, uhm! Oh, street tennis! Or, or, maybe an AMUSEMENT PARK! Yeah! That! We can go ride some roller coasters! It'll be fuuuun!"

"That does sound like fun..." Eiji blinked, looking to the side to see a man who looked vaguely familiar... The black gelled hair, the sunglasses, the suit... It was the man that had come to the school before, looking for Ryoma. "You boys are from Seigaku's tennis team, correct?" Jeri asked.

"Yes." Tezuka said, looking at the man as he stood. "What do you want?" He asked politely, very captain-like.

"Is Ryoma Echizen-kun around? I actually wish to converse with him." Jeri said, giving a very pleasant smile to Tezuka.

"He's currently-" Tezuka stopped at he noticed a deadly look from Fuji being sent his way. What the...

"He's currently sick." Fuji said, standing and turning toward the man. "He's down with a cold."

"Even though it's so warm?" Jeri raised an eyebrow.

"People get colds even when it's not cold." Fuji said with a shrug. His blue eyes glaring at the man.

"Huh. Well, then, will you inform him that I'm currently seeking him out?" Jeri asked.

"If I remember." Fuji said, and sat. The conversation was over.

Jeri nodded, and turned, leaving. There was a faint grin on his face...

"Fujiko..." Eiji said, staring at the other. "Why did you lie?"

"If you ever see that man, do _not _tell him where Ryoma-kun is. Don't tell anyone, in fact." Fuji said firmly.

"You can't say all of this without telling us what is going on." Inui said, and everyone nodded in agreement, including Tezuka and Oishi.

"As teammates, we have a right to know!" Momo said. _And also as a friend..._

"Hn." Fuji stared at his coffee.

Eiji sighed, before an idea popped to mind. "If Fujiko won't tell us... We'll just go and ask Ryoma ourselves!" He cheered. He then proceeded to grab his plastic bowl of ice cream and plastic spoon, and skip out of the cafe. His mind was made up...

Everyone inevitably followed. Time to go see how Ryoma was doing! Even if it had only been a day so far...

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**End of Prince of Demons, Chapter Four.**

I just put 'Dour' instead of 'Four'. Shows how tired I am... It's really late while I'm writing this. (Hah, wrote that two weeks ago...) Hopefully I'll catch some stuff when I edit. (I did!) I noticed in the first chapter, I put-

"Indeed! I happened to meet him just before his family decided to move **to** America. But, to have finally had the chance to meet him again...-" Instead of...

"Indeed! I happened to meet him just before his family decided to move **from** America. But, to have finally had the chance to meet him again...-"

Go me. Anyway, Please Review. Really. That number... going up... I get so happy!!


	5. Chapter Five

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi. I do not own it. (That is why this is a fanfic.)

Wow. That took a long time to update, and the chapter is so short! Maybe it's just cause a lot has been happening in life. And then my computer died. And then I had no will to write when it lived again. Meh... I believe this is the shortest chapter, which makes meh sad. But I'll make a promise! When Chistmas break comes, I'll definately update with a much larger chapter. I'll make it my goal to make it my longest yet! Kay? Kay. Please enjoy!

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**The Prince of Demons, Chapter Five.**

"Well, that's the school." Mizuki said as he, Yuuta, and Ryoma stood in front of St. Rudolph's tennis courts. It had been the last place Mizuki had shown the boy, so they were officially done with the tour.

"What do you think, Echizen-kun?" Yuuta asked, looking at the freshman prodigy.

"I like Seigaku better." Ryoma said flatly, "But this place isn't so bad. Though I still think its tennis team isn't very good. But maybe with me..." He looked off to the side dully, sipping from the Grape Ponta he had bought from a vending machine.

"What was that!" Yuuta yelled this, though Mizuki looked fairly angry himself. "St. Rudolph can beat Aniki's team any day!" He shook his fist at Ryoma, who rolled his eyes.

"Sure, sure..." Ryoma replied with a shrug, and took another sip from his soda. These St. Rudolph people sure were strange, and he could tell that just from these two, and the one time Seigaku had gone against their team. "I'm bored." He said, before Yuuta could get another two cents in. Because darnit, Ryoma didn't need four cents, unless it helped to pay for another soda!

"We just took a tour of the school, what else do you want?" Mizuki asked, slightly frustraited.

"Food." Ryoma said simply, before turning and walking in a random direction. Maybe he'd find a burger joint, if he was lucky.

"...Wait, you're just going to go walking, randomly, not knowing where you are going?!" Mizuki was fairly confused. He'd never knew Ryoma was so... Weird. Was that a good word for it? Probably not, but the boy really was quite blunt and straight-foward. "Because, the nearest food places are in the opposite direction..."

Ryoma turned on his heel, "Alright then." His hand plucked off his cap, while the other ran through his hair. In a moment the cap was back on, and he continued to walk in this new direction.

"Echizen-kun!" Yuuta smacked his forehead with his palm. This boy! Did he WANT to get lost?

"You want to treat? How nice of you." Ryoma said, and snagged Yuuta's sleeve as he passed the boy, dragging him along. Mizuki had no choice but to follow after.

Yuuta growled something under his breath about a bratty, annoying prince, and Ryoma scoffed in return. "Don't you have enough money?!"

"Mm." Ryoma didn't really reply with much, though he did look up at Yuuta. "Don't you...?" He asked, almost innocently. He even pulled off an innocent look quite well.

"No! I don't even have any on me!" Yuuta snapped, and Ryoma sighed, releasing Yuuta's sleeve and almost seemingly appearing at Mizuki's. Mizuki couldn't help but swallow hard at the innocent look Ryoma was now giving him.

"And you... Mi-zu-ki-kun? You have money, right? Won't you pay?" Ryoma asked, pouting a bit.

"Er... Yeah..." He mumbled.

"Good." The smaller boy's voice was flat, and the pout simply disappeared into thin air. He tipped his cap down, acting as though he did NOT just degrade himself for food.

The trio soon arrived at a local burger joint. It hadn't been much of a walk at all, really. Mizuki seemed surprisingly comfortable in the casual diner, with his one burger, fries, and sprite. And Yuuta seemed to just belong, eating his own cheeseburger and coke. Ryoma almost blended in, too. Though, the giant pile of burgers in front of him made him stick out slightly.

"How... How much can you eat?!" Mizuki yelled, slamming his palm down onto the table. "Your own weight in burgers is right there in front of you! There's no way you can finish!" His wallet was almost empty. He wasn't happy, sitting at the same booth as the kid who'd pratically stolen his money.

"Mmph." Ryoma glared, ever so trademarkedly, and went to work on his second burger already.

Yuuta and Mizuki both slammed their heads down onto the table. This kid was crazy...

A few minutes later, Ryoma was done, and staring expectantly at Mizuki. "Get me more." He said.

"I don't have enough money." Mizuki said, glaring at the little moocher.

"Hmph. Aren't you useless, then? You can't even afford to buy me more burgers. Is that any way to treat your guest?" Ryoma rolled his eyes.

For the second time, Mizuki slammed his palms down, standing, "You little ungrateful brat! I just treated you to what, ten burgers?! But you don't even say 'thank you'! You just demand more!"

"Maybe you aren't worthy of my manners." Ryoma said with a shrug. "Or I just don't care."

"!!!" Mizuki almost screamed, but instead just grabbed his drink, the sprite, throwing it right into Ryoma's face and leaving before anyone had time to react. He had just sunken very low, and felt very ashamed of himself. But the boy had seriously driven him to it! The idiot. All he wanted was a few manners! Why did he have to change so much from the other night?

Back in the fast food restaurant, Yuuta was glaring at Ryoma. "You should apologize." He said, flatly, and very seriously to the boy who was vainly trying to get the sticky soda off with a bundle of napkins.

"He just threw a soda at my face." Ryoma said, not looking up to make eye contact with the other. "So, no."

"You sure as hell deserved it. I was just about to do the same." Yuuta said, standing. "Let's go catch up to him, now. You really should at least TRY to make friends with him, he really isn't so bad."

"I know!" Ryoma snapped, glaring. "I just don't care."

"Do you really not?" Yuuta asked, and watched Ryoma join him in standing.

"..." Ryoma didn't reply, but instead moved to the door, dripping wet. Yuuta followed with a sigh.

---

Some time later...

"Nyaaah... No one was there!" Eiji whined to the Seigaku team, minus Ryoma, Inui, Kaidoh, and Taka. Indeed, the team had arrived just a few minutes before, only to find that knocking on Mizuki's dorm room was not getting them any answer. Three of the prior mentioned were searching for Ryoma around the school.

"Are you sure this is the right dorm, Fuji-sempai?" Momo asked, looking to the prodigy, who simply nodded in reply. "Really sure?" Another nod. "Really, really-"

"Momo." Fuji smiled at the taller boy. "I'm really, really, quite sure."

"Ah, right." Momo scratched the back of his head.

"I wonder where he is..." Oishi mumbled.

"As Inui said, he might just be taking a tour of the school." Tezuka said, crossing his arms.

"Apparently not, however."

Everyone turned to see Inui, Kaidoh, and Taka returning. All had slightly disappointed looks on their faces, to some degree. "We didn't see them anywhere."

"Oh my god!" A few in the group jumped at Eiji's sudden outburst. "What is Ryoma was kidnapped and raped and killed by Mizuki?!" He gasped, "And then Mizuki raped his dead body, and-"

"EIJI!" Oishi yelled, eyes wide, "Mizuki-san wouldn't do that!"

"Not even he would be that desperate." Tezuka said.

...Everyone stared at their captain. Wow, they didn't except HIM, of all people, to say that.

"Damn straight!" The group turned to see a fuming Mizuki, glaring right at all of them. "What the hell are you doing in front of my room?! Go away!" He yelled, shoving past them, trying to get to his room. His eyes widened when he found an arm in his way. The nerve! He sent a glare at the one who dared to obstruct his path. Fuji.

"Where is Ryoma-kun?" Fuji asked, glaring at Mizuki.

"How the hell would I know! I'm not his babysitter!" Mizuki snapped. Everyone shuffled uncomfortably- one didn't just snap at Fuji...

"You are supposed to be making sure he doesn't wander off, at the very least. Or get lost." Fuji hissed back. He was pissed.

"I would never help that thief!" Mizuki stomped his foot, and shoved Fuji roughly aside. "Damn brat! Taking all my money and calling me useless!" He opened his dorm door-

"I'm sorry."

Mizuki looked over his shoulder to see Ryoma, still very soaked with sprite. Yuuta stood behind him, looking a little shocked.

Everyone was really shocked. Never did Ryoma apologize... And why was he all wet?

"Ryoma! What happened?" Fuji moved, placing a hand on Ryoma's shoulder before pulling it away. "Is this... sprite?" He asked.

"Yeah." Ryoma said, staring at Mizuki, who was giving him a death glare.

Mizuki was even more pissed. Great, now the bastard was going to tell on him, and make HIM seem like the bad guy.

"What happened?" Fuji asked.

Mizuki prepared himself for the glares he would undoubtedly get from Ryoma's teammates.

"I suppose I had a clumsy moment." Ryoma shrugged, "After Mizuki stormed out, I just spilt it all over myself."

"Did that really happen?" Tezuka asked, sternly.

"Nyaah! Would Ryoma really lie?" Eiji asked.

"I think he'd be blunt about what happened..." Momo added in.

"There's a 50.4 percent chance that Echizen is speaking the truth." Inui just thought he'd tell them.

"I /am/ saying the truth." Ryoma said, glaring around at everyone, before looking to Mizuki. "Now, as I said, I'm sorry." Wow, even repeating the apology... "What I said was rude and inconsiderate to your feelings. I didn't know it'd come across so meanly." What happened next shocked everyone. Ryoma moved, and gave Mizuki a tight hug, focing the other to lean down by wrapping his arms around the other's neck. Fuji was frozen in his spot at the sight, and Eiji, Oishi, and Taka all let out tiny gasps. Even Tezuka's eyes widened. Kaidoh stared, and Inui took notes furiously. Momo just gaped.

"W-w-w...?" Mizuki stared at the boy, who then chose to release him, allowing the other to stand straight.

"Now, I need a shower." Ryoma nodded to everyone, before moving inside. The bathroom door was soon slammed shut behind him.

Everyone was silent for a very long time.

And then Mizuki gasped. "That brat just got soda all over me! And in my hair!" He yelled, looking down at his precious clothes, and then to his hair. What, you didn't think Ryoma would just apologize and not get revenge, did you?

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**End of Prince of Demons, Chapter Five.**

... Nope, can't think of anything snappy to say as an ending. Have a good night/day/whenever you are reading this? I hope you enjoyed? Please review?


	6. Chapter Six

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi. I do not own it. (That is why this is a fanfic.)

Erm. No comment. I suck... xP Like, 7 months since I promised to update? And now I don't even remember a thing about where I wanted this to go. (Nor is it long. Waah...)

But be forewarned for this here story- I have a current obsession with Mizuki/Ryoma. (And a strange Atobe/Ryoma obsession... and Fuji/Ryoma... Crap... -Plots-) And an obsession with KH... Which has been around for many, many months. -Drools at Axel/Roxas and Riku/Sora pairings...- If I get the chance, I'll post those stories I've written on paper... Once I /finish/ them. That way I don't spend half a year on one chapter. xx (I'm so obsessed I cosplayed as Roxas to Fanime. I feel so silly... 3 I have a picture on Deviant art- same account name as on here. -)

Oh, and- I started this last December, worked a paragraph in with about every review I got, did some work when my friend bugged me... And now I finish the chapter, finally... xD

I've not read/seen much PoT in a long time, so I'm sorry if this weird. Oh yeah, and, I'm taking some ideas from the reviews... Thank yous.

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**The Prince of Demons, Chapter Six.**

"It's very cramped in here." No one even looked at Mizuki as he spoke from the door. He didn't dare stain his room with the sticky soda, even if it was already pretty much completely dry. The Seigaku members had invaded his room, sitting on the two beds, or on the desk that came with the dorm. "...Why are you all still here?"

Fuji, who sat on what was now Ryoma's bed with Yuuta and Oishi, took it upon himself to respond. "We want to check on Ryoma-kun. And since he's been in the shower for about an hour now... We really haven't been able to speak to him, now have we?"

"He just wants Mizuki to have cold water," Yuuta said, sighing and rubbing his head.

"That's Echizen for you!" Momo roared with laughter, right along with Eiji. The two were the only ones on top of the desk.

"That's what we'd expect from Ochibi!" Eiji added, giggling as his red hair bobbed up and down with his laughs.

They heard the shower turn off, and all looked expectantly at the bathroom door. Surely the boy would come out any minute now, back in his clothes and tipping his hat slightly as he glared at the bunch of them. And then the questioning would commence!

Of course, when the door opened to reveal the true sight, many of them broke into fits of laughter. Besides Inui and Tezuka, of course. But even Taka and Oishi had to let out a tiny chuckle, and Kaidoh even made a noise related to some sort of laugh. Somewhat related, at least. Like, really far off cousins, quadruply removed.

There before them, was Ryoma. He had a purple towel around his waist, and his head was tilted down to shield his face with his dripping hair. They were laughing at him... Was it really that funny? "Shut up." He hissed, and stomped over to his bag. Damnit... In his rush, he had forgotten both about the purple towels in the bathroom, and had forgotten to get his clothes from his bag. They were still laughing, too! He grabbed a pair of clothes and stood straight, "Shut up!" He yelled again, glaring at them all before moving toward the bathroom.

To his surprise, Mizuki passed in front of him and into the bathroom before he could react, closing the door and locking it...

"There, Echizen. Taste revenge." Mizuki called from inside, and the shower was cut on again.

Ryoma twitched angrily, and turned to his teammates. "Get out, all of you. And STOP laughing, Momo-sempai! Kikumaru-sempai!" That shut them up, at least. He was pleased to see the two scramble out, along with the rest of them exiting in a more calm manner.

"Ah, sorry, Echizen..." And at least Oishi had the manners to apologize, and after him, Taka did as well. Even Yuuta gave a small nod as he exited.

But Fuji stopped at the door. "Need any help?" He asked, and was shoved right out of the door by Ryoma, before it was slammed shut. Finally, he could change in PEACE.

Outside of the room, Eiji was pouting in a sort of strange, hyper depression... "He kicked us ouuuutt... But I'm sure Ochibi will forgive us, once we take him to the amusement park!"

"Since when are we taking him to an amusement park?" Momo asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Since buchou said we could! Right, Tezuka-buchou?" Eiji asked, looking to their captain.

Tezuka was silent for a long moment. "... I never said that." He said, bluntly. "And besides that fact, I don't believe any would be open at this time of year."

"There are a few, but there is only one open anywhere nearby, and by 'nearby' I mean quite a ways away." Inui commented, looking down at his rather magically appearing notebook. Eiji stared at it, plotting to figure out where Inui kept that thing... But... Where...? Unless...

"OH MY-" Eiji's eye widened.

"What?" Inui looked at Eiji, and confusion would certainly be seen in his eyes, if they were not hidden behind those super-duper reflective glasses of his.

"You keep that thing up your-"

Momo smacked a hand over Eiji's mouth. "Shhh! Don't let him know we know!"

"You knew?!" Eiji gasped, in shock of the fact that Momo wouldn't tell him of the super secret not-really-a-secret secret hiding spot of Inui's book, when he had known all along!

"You guys!" Oishi laughed nervously, shaking his head at his teammates. They could be so... childish sometimes. That was why HE was the mommy.

((Note from the author: Yes. I am on a sugar/caffeine high. AND?! oe))

Fuji looked around silently at his teammates, smiling his brilliant, almost-always present smile. But he continually glanced at the door to the dorm, trying to hear for when Ryoma would be done dressing, so they could go back in. He had some questions... Like, how had Mizuki been treating him? Did he need to be killed, maimed, stuffed in a closet, thrown into the ocean, or all of the above? He was sure he could pull off stuffing the Manager of St. Rudolph's tennis team into a closet, AND throw him into an ocean in one go. Somehow. If anyone could do it, Fuji could, after all. Unless no one could do it. But even then...!

The door gave a small click, signifying that it was unlocked. It slowly creaked open, and soon Ryoma was revealed. Black shirt, blue jeans, and of course the hat. "Are you guys still here? Why don't you all just go home." He glared at the bunch of them.

"Aww, Ochibi! But we were just worried about how you are doing!" Eiji whined, moving forward to tug on the freshman's sleeve. "And we wanted to know why you came here, and who that guy from before was, with the weird hair! He came up to us before we came here. Sooo creepy! And Fujiko lied and said you were sick. Why?"

Ryoma glanced toward Fuji. So he hadn't told them... Well, of course he wouldn't. He was, after all, supposed to be his 'guard'. And he wouldn't have been doing his job if he HAD told them... "Because..." Ryoma replied.

"Because what?" Momo came forward then, setting his hand on Ryoma's shoulders. "Echizen...! Why don't you just tell us? We are your team mates- and... and your friends! You can tell us what is really going on!"

Yuuta and Fuji glanced at each other. It was Ryoma's choice... but...

"...I guess he's kinda like a stalker?" Ryoma blinked a few times, wondering if that was the right way to say that. "Kinda... I guess... I'm not sure. A-And anyway, it's none of your business!" He looked down, letting his cap hide his face from Momo's view.

"... Echizen... For the past few days, you've been acting so... weird." Momo released Ryoma, taking a step back.

"... If he's really a stalker, why don't you call the police?" Tezuka asked, looking down at the freshman.

"Well, I don't know... it's just..." Ryoma glanced toward Yuuta and Fuji, almost as though wanting to ask for help, before looking back down. "... I said it before. It's none of your guy's business."

"But Echizen! If... If you can't even trust us, then who the hell can you trust?! Are none of us good enough!?" Momo had clearly snapped. Why? Why couldn't Echizen just _trust_ them? "Or do you really hate us that much?!"

"M... Momo..." Eiji flinched as his friends words, but looked at Ryoma, his own hurt expression on his face. As Ryoma glanced at all his friend's faces, he could see... just this hint of hurt. Momo's words had certainly reached their ears too. Was... Was it true? That's what they wanted to know.

Ryoma backed up a step, staring downward now. He felt burned. "I don't... hate you guys. But you'd either laugh or think I'm crazy if I told you." He paused as he thought. But... wait... He'd told Mizuki, didn't he? And he hadn't laughed. He'd believed him. But... He had to tell him! He had that picture!

Fuji let out a tiny sigh, coming forward and placing a hand on Ryoma's shoulder. "It's okay, Ryoma-kun. I know talking about something like this must be very hard for you. Blurting it out would be very difficult, I mean, just saying 'oh guess what everyone, I'm not human! And this stalker guy is a hunter, trying to kill me!'"

Ryoma nearly gagged as he looked up at his sempai. Wasn't he the one who'd probably want it to be kept a secret?! Even if Ryoma had wanted to tell everyone, he still... knew they'd laugh! And... And they were! They were laughing at him!

"Oh my GOD, Fujiko! That has got to be the funniest thing you've ever said!" Eiji roared.

"Oh, but Eiji-kun." Fuji looked at the one laughing the hardest. His eyes quite open. "I am deadly serious. But didn't Ryoma tell you you'd laugh? He certainly wanted to tell you, but I do think he was afraid of this very reaction."

Yuuta had hidden his face in his hand. What the hell was his brother thinking? "Aniki..." This couldn't possibly go well!

Eiji was silenced by Fuji's look, and he coughed a bit nervously.

"Fshh... Echizen." Kaidoh stared as curiously as was possible for him at Ryoma. "Was that it? You aren't human?"

Ryoma looked at Kaidoh. What...? He didn't... Look shocked, or anything. Not even amused, just... kinda... curious, almost "... Erm..."

"It's very hard to believe without proof." Inui stated, "And what exactly would you be, if not human? I am unable to believe this. Sorry, Fuji-san."

"Oh, it's quite alright. Either way, I'm not human either, and neither is my dear brother Yuuta-kun." Fuji chuckled at Inui.

"Aniki! Stop this!" Yuuta said in a hiss. "They'll think you are crazy!"

"Saa, I'm sure they do already," Fuji folded his arms, smiling at everyone, his eyes still showing that blue color to the world. "It's hard for humans to comprehend the existence of demons-" He nodded toward Ryoma, "and spirits." He tilted his head to the side, indicating himself.

"Oh? Fuji is a spirit?" Everyone seemed to jump at Mizuki's voice. How the hell did he take a shower so fast? "I was wondering about that."

"What the... Wait, suppose we did believe this- You would tell MIZUKI?" Momo looked just... completely betrayed. "Seriously? And not me? Or us? And- and...?!"

"Momo-chan-sempai!" Everyone turned their eyes to Ryoma. "Why do you think I came here? Because I /like/ him? He got a picture!"

"A picture of what?" Momo stared at Ryoma, brows knitted to together.

"This." Mizuki stepped forward, flipping a picture out of his (silky) sleeve, holding it right up to Momo's face.

Momo had to step back, but snatched the picture from Mizuki's hand. "What the- this is from before that car almost ran us over..."

"The person driving that car was trying to kill me." Ryoma said quietly. He watched as the picture was snatched by Inui, so the data collector could stare at it.

"... I don't see any signs of it being photoshopped. Wings, though...?" Inui frowned. The picture was then snatched by Eiji, who stared at it in awe, before passing it to Oishi. And it was passed around, one by one, and then a second time for those who needed to see it again. Inui would know if it was photoshopped...

"Why did they want to kill you?" Tezuka finally asked, "And was it that same man?"

"I'm not sure, but it might've been..." Ryoma mumbled in reply to the second question. The first... would be kind of hard to answer.

"Because, he is our prince" Fuji giggled, turning from everyone and going to one knee. He reached forward, grasping one of Ryoma's hands in his own and kissing it, "Our dearest Prince of Demons."

"?!" Ryoma stared down at Fuji in shock. 'WTF'. Yeah. That just about summed up his expression. What. The. Fudgecakes.

"Prince?" Everyone turned their gazes to Kaidoh. "But-" He stopped.

Fuji raised a brow, still holding Ryoma's hand, though he was looking at Kaidoh as well. "What is it, Kaidoh?"

"..." Kaidoh looked away, just bowing his head slightly. "Nothing..."

Momo frowned, and looked back to Ryoma and Fuji. "You know... I... I think I believe you, Echizen." He shivered, rubbing his arms. "I really think I believe you."

Eiji blinked, and pouted. "Well, I believe him too!" He turned, moving and glomping onto Ryoma. Fuji stood as he did this. "Little Ochibi makes such a cute little demon prince!" He giggled happily. "I can totally see it!"

Oishi frowned, and looked down. "I want to believe you, Echizen-san... but..." He looked truthfully at the other. "It's still very hard for me to." It seemed... It was time to reveal everyone's feelings on the matter.

"I have to agree with Oishi-san." Taka said, smiling shyly. "I can't even think of such things existing."

"I don't." Inui shook his head, "The photo looks very real, but I don't believe it. Data says such things do not exist. Though... I do want to research this. To see for sure."

"I believe it." Kaidoh said flatly. Some people looked quite surprised over this- especially Inui. According to his calculations, Kaidoh didn't seem the type to believe this sort of thing...

Everyone now turned to their captain. Three people believed Ryoma and Fuji. Three didn't. Did he...?

"I trust what Fuji and Echizen say. They aren't the type to lie about anything besides reasons for being late." Tezuka explained, "And if they did, I would give them 500 laps."

Everyone had to sweatdrop at that.

"500 laps..." Mizuki sighed, "If only my team could do that sort of work."

"Hey!" Yuuta looked insulted, "Are you insulting your own team?"

"Of course not." Mizuki shrugged, and smirked, "I just realized that I need to step up their training."

Eiji giggled a bit at that. And his laughter immediately got caught. Momo began laughing as well, and soon Oishi and Taka were chuckling. Fuji, too, laughed at the thought of St. Rudolph writhing in the pain from running. And then seeing them laughing was enough to make Inui smirk a bit. Maybe he could give Mizuki a few tips for Inui Juices. Kaidoh made a noise more related to a laugh than before, and Tezuka curled his lips upward.

Why was it so funny? God knows, but their laughter spread to Yuuta as well, and then Mizuki found himself chuckling.

Ryoma just stared at them like they were crazy. He tilted his hat down, finding a smile threatening his lips. Over half his team believed him... And... The ones who didn't, didn't think he was crazy. It made him... kinda happy.

But he felt something suddenly grasp his heart- not something physically, but some strange feeling. A cold feeling.

_'Enjoy the happiness while it lasts. Hard times are to come. Pain lies in your path.'_

_'Watch out. Your enemy will find you. That is the price for happiness.'_

_**'Because you don't deserve such a feeling.'**_

Ryoma suddenly gasped as he felt a pain pierce deep inside his head. His hands flew up, and everyone looked to him. "Ryoma-kun?!" Fuji came forward, placing his hands on Ryoma's shoulders. "What's wrong?!"

"N-Nothing... B... But... his voice..." Ryoma squinted his eyes. Damnit, why did it hurt so much?! _Why... Why that man's voice?! Why- _Something flashed before Ryoma's eyes, and suddenly it was not Fuji holding him by the shoulders. But that man... Jeri... He could feel nails piercing his skin, and the grin on the man's face made him want to... to... just... die... Just to not have to see it anymore.

The sunglasses were not there. The cold, icy blue eyes the man had were piercing into him. And he felt the nails tear down his arms, tearing his flesh.

Ryoma let out a loud scream, and his body fell forward. Fuji caught him, as everyone rushed to get the unconscious boy to a bed. In seconds he was laying in Mizuki's bed, whole body limp. A far too peaceful look was on his face, causing an eerie feeling to fill the room...

"What... What the hell just happened?" Momo asked, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. "He... He screamed... and... and fainted!"

"Fujiko..." Eiji looked at Fuji. He had taken residence right next to Ryoma, sitting against the wall as he grabbed the boy's nearest hand. "Don't you know?"

Fuji slowly shook his head, "I... I don't. I can't tell."

"... We should get him to a hospital." Tezuka suggested.

"No," Yuuta moved forward, shaking his head. "It isn't natural, and nothing from a hospital will help him. I can tell that much."

Mizuki was standing at the foot of the bed. He was silently watching Ryoma... Before his eyes rested on the boy's forehead. What was that... weird black light? It seemed to just be... floating over his head... "...What's that?" He asked, pointing.

"What?" Fuji looked to where Mizuki was pointing, before looking back. "What are you pointing at?"

"That orb... light... dark... thing." Mizuki said.

Yuuta frowned, "There's nothing there, Mizu- What are you doing?"

Mizuki had moved around to the side of the bed. Reaching his hand forward to poke the dark light- but stopping an inch away. "This."

"You are pointing to air!" Eiji said with a frown.

"No! It's-" Mizuki poked the orb...

Everyone else watched as they saw Mizuki suddenly throw up his arms, as though to cover his eyes from a bright flash... And then the other was on his back, eyes open and blank.

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**End of Prince of Demons, Chapter Six.**

First- if anyone was confused, that part with Ryoma fainting was totally a flashback, like in the beginning chapter. Yeaaah.

And... YES. I have an /idea/ for the next chapter! I know what I want to do! WOOT! Maybe I won't take half a year this time!

Uhm. Read and Review? Though maybe I don't deserve it... xD''


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